


The Retrieval Job

by DinerGuy



Series: The Five Crossroads Jobs [5]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Leverage
Genre: Also featuring two characters with cameos too tiny to warrant being tagged, Crossover, Gen, One Shot, Pre-Series, Short, The two times Lance Hunter met Leverage team members and lived to tell about it, and the three times he almost didnt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-04
Updated: 2016-01-04
Packaged: 2018-05-11 19:09:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5638513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DinerGuy/pseuds/DinerGuy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The time Lance Hunter learned that paychecks aren’t always worth the headaches</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Retrieval Job

**Author's Note:**

  * For [truthtakestime](https://archiveofourown.org/users/truthtakestime/gifts).



> All characters within belong to their respective creators (except for the random original characters that I invented). No copyright infringement is intended and no profit is being made from anything you read here.
> 
> Unbetaed, so all mistakes within are completely my fault.

It was supposed to be a quick job. Go in, grab the statue thingie, and get out. No fuss, no mess, and certainly no fistfights along the way. Unfortunately, Hunter’s life didn’t always listen to his gameplans - and even seemed to conspire against him on some occasions. This was one such occasion, and the co-conspirator was currently glowering at him from across the small room.  
  
“You have got to be kidding me,” Hunter said aloud, his fists clenching reflexively at the sight of the other man.  
  
If it was possible, the other man looked even less pleased to see Hunter. “What are you doing here?” he growled. He had also gone on the defensive; his tensed shoulders communicating that he was more than ready to take on anything or anyone who came at him. The man was all muscles and intimidation - even his shoulder-length brown hair was threatening, Hunter decided. It added to the whole lion persona the man had going on.  
  
“I could ask you the same question,” Hunter shot back. The boat rocked gently under their feet as Hunter continued, “It’s been a while, Spencer.”  
  
Spencer sniffed. “Not long enough. How’s Bobbi?”  
  
“You don’t get to talk about her,” Hunter retorted quickly. He had been trying to calculate if he could get past the other man quickly enough to make a clean exit, but the mention of his ex-wife grabbed all of his attention.  
  
With a shake of his head, Spencer replied, “Uh, I think so. I dated her, remember? Or did our last encounter cause memory loss?” He smirked.  
  
“Ah, c’mon. You didn’t beat me that badly,” Hunter objected, spreading his arms side to side. “I thought I came out of that encounter rather well, thank you very much. I landed some pretty good shots if I recall…” He trailed off as he quirked an eyebrow at Spencer.  
  
The other man rolled his eyes, as if he was dealing with a petulant toddler. “Sure, if that’s your definition of what happened.” He glanced around the room, then back at Hunter and got straight to business. “If I had to guess, we’re here for the same thing.”  
  
Hunter nodded slowly. “Most likely. So should we just save ourselves the trouble and let me walk out of here with the prize?” He shrugged as he continued, “Might be your best bet, Spencer; I’d take the offer while I can.”  
  
“Huh, I was about to say the same to you,” Spencer returned.  
  
Frowning, Hunter realized that Spencer was closer to the target. It would be way too easy for the other man to simply beat him to it… This was not something he had taken into consideration when he had taken this gig. In fact, it was calling into question his whole perspective on his work lately.  
  
The gigs he had worked over the past months had all gone quite well, and he had started feeling very good about himself. There was no pressure to show up at an office all day every day, and he still made great money, even better than when he had been employed full time. Or rather, he made great money when he had gigs. Recently, things had slowed down for no tangible reason lately, and there had been a distinct lack of income, which was starting to stretch his bank account. So when this newest job had come up, he had gladly taken it.  
  
It was one of the shadier jobs he had carried out, to be sure, but Hunter thought it was in one of those excusable gray areas, especially considering the amount of the paycheck he had been offered. The item he had been hired to retrieve was some antique statue that had made the rounds on the black market over the years. Apparently it had been part of the Nazi treasure in the ‘40s, and the person who had hired Hunter was just another in the long line of collectors wanting to possess it. He knew Bobbi wouldn’t have approved of his taking this job if she was still in the picture to have a say, but it was his job and his call, and he had decided to accept it. After all, he wasn’t going to make a habit of working these types of retrieval jobs. One here and there wasn’t going to hurt. And the money sure wouldn’t hurt either.  
  
Or at least that’s what he had told himself. Now, regardless of how much he had tried to block out his thoughts of what his ex would think of what he was doing here, darned Spencer had shown up and brought it all back to mind. Speaking of Spencer, the man was still watching him from across the room, with that same ridiculous hint of a smile on his face.  
  
“What?” Hunter muttered, pushing aside his thoughts to get back to the matter at hand.  
  
Just then, a _thump_ came from outside, and at the same moment, the boat rocked suddenly. Someone had just climbed onto the deck from the wooden walkway that ran the length of the marina. Hunter growled under his breath. He couldn’t speak for Spencer, but his own plan had been to go in and grab the statue at as late an hour as possible, when no one would be around. It was a multi-billion dollar yacht, for crying out loud. Who would expect anyone to show up at the docks at this time of the night?  
  
But running into Spencer had thrown a wrench into Hunter’s plans, and now he was faced with a lapse in his timeline that could end badly. Regardless of why this person was arriving, he or she would unlock the door and come upon the intruders - which, depending on the person’s level of situational awareness and possible possession of a firearm, could end very badly.  
  
And then, as if it couldn’t get worse, there was a second _thump_ and shaking of the boat, right on the heels of the first. Hunter made the decision to cut and run. He could come back later, but that would hinge on if he could extract himself from the situation at hand first. He crept to the door closest to him and took a cautious peek out onto the deck of the ship.  
  
There were two teenage boys standing there, whispering to each other. Thankfully their backs were turned to Hunter, and so neither caught any hint of movement at the window. Noting the high chance that any attempt on his part to sneak out from that door would potentially be foiled if either boy turned around, Hunter pulled back and turned towards the door on the far side of the cabin. He frowned to himself as he realized Spencer had already disappeared but didn’t spend any time dwelling on the other man’s whereabouts. Spencer could get himself shot for all that Hunter cared.  
  
Hunter slipped towards the railing of the ship, placing his feet carefully to avoid any sounds that would give him away. Part of him wanted to stay and search for the statue; after all, he had come out to do a job and he hated to leave without doing it, especially since leaving empty-handed meant he’d have to come back later to try again, but he realized the foolishness of that plan.  
  
He’d just have to return to _The Queen’s Gambit_ when Spencer was nowhere around - and he’d have to make sure he beat the other man to it.  
  
Hopefully that would be less impossible than it sounded.


End file.
